The Marquess and Marchioness lived in bliss and content throughout the whole week, feeding each other bites of food in the privacy of their chamber and staring at each other through lovey- dovey eyes at the dining table. However, they did not keep the love blossoming between them a secret and others at the table were able to notice the love flowing between them. Isaac simply looked at them and wished to find a woman would love him the way Lady Beatrice loved Lord Alexander. Victor was joyous about the love between her first son and her daughter - in - law. Love that she had feared was lost before. She beamed from ear to ear and prayed fervently in her heart for a grandchild soon. Annalise stared at the couple especially Beatrice with contempt although she tried to mask her true feelings by smiling at the couple whenever any of them caught her staring. She hated Beatrice for having the love of Alexander, something she had wanted since childhood when she and Alexander had played in the

Annalise had known as soon as she had seen Beatrice walking in front of Lucia and another maid that something was up. Her decision to follow them and eavesdrop on their conversation had been a quick one. On the way, she had been intercepted by Issac who had tried to make small talk with her. She had tried not to let her impatience show but he was talking too much that she had to make a quick decision. She'd had to excuse herself from him. Annalise did not even give him a moment to respond before she had hurried away to the direction of Alexander's chamber. I shall stay there one day, she promised herself. Annalise went to her own chamber to think about a way that she could present the information she had just learnt to Alexander and he would have no choice but to believe her without doubt. Back in the Marquess's chamber, Lucia was talking. "Lady Beatrice, now that I have heard your tale, I feel alright. I am not sick anymore. I am pleased that I did not destroy the union between you

Beatrice took in a deep breath. She had not planned to tell Alexander about Annalise's bad act so soon. She had not wanted him to see her in a bad light but now that she had not stopped at her first attempt at perpertrating evil, perhaps it was time to expose her. Seeing that she was taking too much time to respond to his question, Alexander repeated it again. "Beatrice, what did that fool do the first time?" he asked, trying to quelch his anger. "The white dress I wanted to wear for the ball, it was Annalise that suggested it, only she did not tell me directly. She prodded Lucia to suggest it to me. I agreed and after Lucia saw you get angry about the dress on the night of the ball, the next day, she also overheard Annalise hallucinating about her failed plan when I did not put on the dress for the ball. According to Lucia, Annalise said she had heard about the tragic history you have with the main owner of the dress and she wanted you to disgrace me in front of everyone when you g

The meal they were served was delicious and filling. There was roasted pork filled with greens and carrots. There was also apple pie and apple cider. At the end of the meal, a sweet wine made from blackcurrants was brought to the table and everyone marveled at the taste of it. It was different from any other wine they had ever drank. The taste was sharp as it was sweet. The cooks had been experimenting with different types of wine making recipes when they had decided to try this one out and it had turned out a very sweet wine which was to the liking of everybody. Everyone had made small talk as they ate the food on their plates. Suzanne had talked about the state of everyone in Chester and Beatrice had also supplied information about Ludlow and its people. Alexander and Isaac had gotten into a debate about the profits and losses of farming and Victoria and Joshua had compared the prizes of some basic things in each other's town. Annalise had also given her opinion on some t

Beatrice woke up on the bed in her chamber feeling disoriented. She felt numb and her mind was blank. Her whole body felt to her as if it was on fire. Heat seeped from the pores in her skin. Even her whole body felt like a dead weight and she could lift her hands and legs only a few inches.She tried to think back to what had happened at the lake with Nomar but nothing came up in her mind. She and Nomar had gone to the bottom of the lake for the training session. She also remembered that her breathing had become shallow and she had begun to feel faint. As the memories of her last time at the lake came back now, the last thing she remembered of it was when Nomar carried her to the surface of the water, set her down on the ground near the lake and pulled on her clothes before the darkness descended on her. Beatrice wondered why she had collapsed and fainted. Nomar had said magic took energy away from someone but not to the extent of this. She questioned herself more and more but she co